Everything was connected.
Charlie and the others were convinced that I was a doormat they could trample all over.
Unfortunately for them, they were sorely mistaken.
A high-pitched, feminine voice cut through the air. "Oh? If it isn't Ms. Rosewood."
Charlie's wife, Sasha Fitch, waddled over to us, escorted by her bridesmaids. Her belly was quite large. Her wedding dress was made of cheap lace, and the rhinestone necklace around her neck was blinding. It was obvious at just a single glance that the stones were from a warehouse.
She approached Charlie and locked arms with him. She pressed close to him and asked, "Why are you wasting your breath on a piece of trash like her, honey?"
Sasha shot a look of disdain at me. She pulled out a stack of hundred-dollar bills from her handbag and threw them in my face.
The sharp edges of the bills sliced across my cheek, leaving a stinging sensation in their wake. They fluttered through the air before scattering all over the floor.
"Take the money and get out of our sight, Lily. There should be enough there to cover your cab fare. As for the 510 thousand dollars that you owe us, I don't care if you have to donate your blood to collect enough money to pay off your debt."
I didn't budge an inch and let the bills fall around my feet.
Sasha mistook my silence for fear. She pulled out her phone and started livestreaming.
"Look, everyone! My husband's ex-girlfriend came to crash the wedding on our happy day! She enjoyed the food that we provided for free, but she wants to weasel her way out of paying her debt!"
Sasha thrust the phone at me, nearly hitting my nose with the screen. She intentionally turned off the beauty filter and filmed me from an unflattering angle that made my face look bigger and greasier than it actually was.
The number of viewers in the live stream rose rapidly. A flood of comments appeared on the screen.
"Is she supposed to be Charlie's horrible ex-girlfriend? She looks very average."
"I can't believe she's shameless enough to crash the wedding while dressed like an old hag."
"I've seen plenty of gold diggers like her. She just wants to extort money from them!"
"We have to find her! We can't let people like her get away with their schemes!"
A smug smile stretched across Sasha's lips as she read the comments.
"Look, everyone! She's not saying a word because she's feeling guilty. Charlie treated her so well. He invited her to our wedding even though they had already broken up. And how did she repay his kindness? By scheming with others to steal our money!"
It was clear that Sasha was trying to twist the truth in her favor, painting me as the villain.
Fury burned within me as I looked at the endless stream of angry comments.
"Spreading malicious rumors is against the law, Sasha," I spat coldly.
Sasha covered her mouth in an exaggerated manner. "Oh, I'm so scared!" she exclaimed. "But tell me, can a pauper like you even afford to hire a lawyer? Instead of preaching to me about the law, why don't you settle the bill for dinner first?"
Just then, Charlie's mother, Melissa Carlton, approached us, holding a pot.
It was the leftover fish stew from the main table. A thick layer of oil floated on the surface, and there were cigarette butts and phlegm mixed in the stew.
It was extremely disgusting.
"You don't want to pay?" Melissa demanded as she slammed the pot onto the table, causing the stew to splash everywhere. "That's fine. But you have to finish this entire pot of stew. I think I'll be able to find it in myself to remove a zero from the amount you owe us if you do!"
The people around us burst out into raucous laughter.
"Drink the stew!" they chanted as they slapped their hands against the table.
Melissa lifted the pot again and tried to forcefully pour its contents into my mouth.
Its nauseating scent permeated my senses.
"Drink! Why aren't you drinking it? Do you think it's too bland?" Melissa demanded before spitting a thick glob of phlegm into the stew. "It should be quite flavorful now. Drink it!"
She then tried to force-feed the stew to me again.
I knocked the pot away, causing it to tumble to the floor.
The fish stew splashed everywhere. Most of it soaked Melissa's red gown, while some of it drenched Sasha's wedding dress.
Sasha let out a shrill shriek. She grabbed the hem of her dress and began hopping around.
"My wedding dress!" she screeched. "It's a haute couture piece! Can you even afford to compensate me for dirtying it?"
Meanwhile, Melissa looked like a cat that had its tail stepped on.
"You bitch! How dare you splash the stew at me?"
She then raised her hand and tried to slap me.
I shifted my body to the side and dodged her attack.
Melissa stumbled forward when her hand lost its mark, and she nearly fell face-first onto the fish stew.
